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DiNardo, Kratz Plead Not Guilty

Two men accused of killing four men in Bucks County entered pleas of not guilty on Thursday. Now, prosecutors continue to discuss the death penalty possibility.

(Published Thursday, Dec. 14, 2017)

The parents of one of the four men killed during a murderous spree on a Bucks County farm over the summer have filed the first wrongful death lawsuit in the case.

Attorneys representing the family of Mark Sturgis filed the suit against the two cousins accused in the killings, Sean Kratz and Cosmo DiNardo, as well as DiNardo's parents, according to a copy of the suit obtained by NBC10.

"With this lawsuit, the heartbroken parents of Mark Sturgis intend to hold accountable everyone responsible for the horrific death of their son, not just those who pulled the trigger," Philadelphia-based attorney Robert Ross of Ross Feller Casey, LLP said. "This includes those who negligently and carelessly permitted either of the accused to gain access to firearms and equipment used in these heinous crimes."

The 26-page suit was filed Wednesday in the Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas.

At the time of his arrest, DiNardo’s attorney said his client gave a "full confession.” DiNardo allegedly admitted to authorities that he'd been involved in killing all four men, who were identified as Dean Finocchiaro, 19, of Middletown Township; Sturgis, 22, of Pennsburg, Montgomery County; Tom Meo, 21, of Plumstead Township; and Jimi Taro Patrick, 19, of Newtown Township.

His confession, which allegedly included alerting investigators to the location of Patrick's body in a remote part of the 90-acre Solebury Township farm, was given in exchange for an offer from Bucks County District Attorney Matt Weintrab that the death penalty not be sought at trial.